Mjallby pleased Brown snubbed England’s riches for trophy chase
By Fraser Mackie
SCOTT BROWN could have added another zero to his career earnings. Yet the likelihood of adding a big fat nothing to his medal cabinet held limited appeal. When Brown reflects on his playing days, forever remembered as the Celtic captain during an unprecedented period of domestic dominance, it will be priceless.
So earning three or four times his wage every week in England for a few years would have counted for little in his eyes when compared against the attraction of securing a triple Treble.
Down south, they’d call that easy pickings. If Celtic go on to achieve such a silverware streak, Brown won’t care less about the regard in which the achievement is held.
For, as former Celtic defender and assistant manager Johan Mjallby explains, having his Celtic story being bound in the club’s history books for all time far outweighs financial gain elsewhere.
Mjallby became Parkhead No2 just a few months after Brown’s closest scrape with the exit door. At the lowest ebb of his relationship with the doomed Tony Mowbray in January 2010, the chance was presented to pack his bags for Newcastle United.
During the next transfer window, Brown became Celtic’s permanent captain under Neil Lennon.
The armband has been his property ever since while taking
his tally of major honours
with Celtic to 17. Mjallby is convinced there will never be regret on Brown’s part that the route to England was closed off.
‘Captaining Celtic to a triple Treble is better than playing in England for a few years,’ stressed Mjallby.
‘Scott is already a legend. But I would doubt if a triple Treble would ever been done again.
‘He has a great position as captain of the club and being one of the most important characters at Celtic.
‘That means more to Scott, along with winning trophies and getting the chance to play in Europe, than playing for a mid-table team in England, earning more money.
‘That doesn’t matter to him — and I like him even more for that. He is more interested in being influential for Celtic, winning trophies and entering the history books.
‘The Premier League is one of the best, if not the biggest, in the world. The Scottish game can’t compete financially, we know that.
‘But Scott’s decision to stay at Celtic for his career shows how important Celtic still is.’
Mjallby called Lennon the ‘safe bet’ last week to keep the manager’s job into next season, once he has fulfilled his caretaker duties again.
That wasn’t a description for Brown’s deployment as club captain when Lennon took over for his first spell alongside Mjallby.
The armband was tainted somewhat at the time by being passed around the dressing room before landing with a hitherto out-of-favour Brown in the dying days of Mowbray’s reign.
Lennon’s decision was that the then 25-year-old was indeed ready to become leader of the group, a call that was brought into question before August was out.
His suitability for the role appeared dubious as Celtic crashed out of the Europa League qualifiers in Utrecht.
A display littered with dissent and indiscipline led to his being substituted in the second half while walking a red card tightrope.
‘I don’t think we doubted him,’ stated Mjallby. ‘But it was a time Browny, especially as skipper, had to control his emotions.
‘You don’t need to be perfect, just because you are skipper. But what you need to be is a very good example for other players.
‘That’s especially so in big games or when you play in Europe and the team is not doing too well.
‘Or having that 10, 15 minutes — as you always have in big games — when you’re not doing great.
‘That’s when you look to your skipper to be there for you and be the calming influence. He is that for this team. He’s been fantastic in that and a great leader for Celtic.
‘Yes, the devilment has never left him. But you need that if you want to win. You need the Scott Browns of this world.
‘You’re talking about a born winner. I was blessed to play with a lot of them under Martin O’Neill — every training session was like a World Cup final.
‘Lennon, Alan Thompson, John Hartson, Chris Sutton, Paul Lambert. Yes, the game has changed a bit and the way Brendan Rodgers played is different. But you still need characters who can be your extra eyes and ears out there. Scott does it fantastically and has a great relationship with Neil.
‘After we secured our jobs in 2010, Neil said: “Browny’s going to be my leader”. Hopefully you have a number of leaders in the team but you always need at least one. ‘He hasn’t disappointed us.’ Brown disappoints many and enrages even more with his antics, most recently his battles with Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie and his Old Firm capers.
Lost, suggests Mjallby, amid the promotion of a Public Enemy No 1 persona among Celtic’s rivals is the quality of player.
Brown’s improvement as a player, says the Swede, hasn’t been affected by committing his entire career to the Scottish top flight.
‘Quite early on, Neil saw something in Scott that probably was a bit similar to him in more than just how they play the game,’ said Mjallby. ‘The same passion as he had as a player and in management. Both of them want a lot of responsibility on their shoulders, on the pitch and with the squad.
‘Of course, Scott was initially a bit more attackminded than Neil was. He improved as player greatly during our time there. He’s always been seen as more of a hard-working player that runs box to box.
‘Now, over the years, it’s more about sitting and reading the game. So it meant he’s never got the credit he deserves. ‘Scott is a very skilful player. But he knows that’s not his role, so you don’t see it as much.’
Captaining Celtic to a triple Treble means more to Scott than big wages